Business

Lawrence Maduna (65), the Agricultural Research Council’s Eastern Cape Emerging Beef Farmer for 2014, farms a Bonsmara-dominated herd of 160 breeding females in the Lady Grey district of the Eastern Cape. Mike Burgess visited him to learn about his winning approach to beef production.

Two sisters from the farm Kromrivier in the Cederberg are brewing up a storm with their premium-quality craft beers, and at the same time contributing to the region’s ecotourism.

Macadamia growers are in the pound seat, with prices at unprecedented highs. Nut processor, Mayo Macs, is helping farmers ensure that the good times last, says Myles Osborn, consultant to Mayo Macs.

Former minister of agriculture Dr Kraai van Niekerk’s honeybee hobby, which he started after quitting politics in 2009, has grown into a fully-fledged farming enterprise. It is now among the top 20 honeybee operations in the Western Cape.

Wildlife ranching continues to be a fast-growing industry with a bright future, notwithstanding recent negative press that its practices harm conservation, says Dr Peter Oberem, president of Wildlife Ranching SA.

Input costs are biting hard, but Matla-Gamede Farming’s owners are determined to turn their operation into a fully-fledged commercial business.

It is an unfortunate reality that unemployment and poverty are rife in South Africa’s traditional authority areas. A pilot research project to develop commercial peach production and processing in parts of KwaZulu-Natal hopes to help alleviate this situation.

Transferring a farming operation amicably to the next generation requires communication and planning, says agri-economist Dr Philip Theunissen.

South African brandy sales decreased from a high of 45 million litres in 1999 to 31 million litres last year. Christelle Reade-Jahn, director of the SA Brandy Foundation, spoke to Denene Erasmus about the value of brandy to the wine industry and plans to regain some of the spirit’s market share.

The local game industry was hit hard by the EU’s ban on meat exports, lifted early last year. Now, SA exporters are struggling to regain lost revenue and re-establish markets. Gerhard Uys reports.

With South Africa’s national power supply becoming increasingly unreliable, fruit farmer Kobus van der Westhuizen decided to install a hydro-electric plant on his Western Cape farm. This has greatly reduced his dependence on the grid.

South Africa’s maize crop, the smallest in eight years, will probably fuel inflation in the months to come as the price of maize increases. Jaco Visser spoke to economists as well as an agribusiness about the outlook for food prices, inflation and interest rates.

The phasing out of the EU quota system and rising global demand for milk offer export opportunities for the Netherlands. Despite differences in demographics and production circumstances, this country has valuable lessons for SA.

South Africa is seeing renewed interest in crocodile farming, with skins fetching attractive prices. There is a growing international demand for the product, and SA may be at an advantage.

South Africa’s poultry companies have had a rally in their share prices over the past year as a slump in the maize price boosted confidence in higher profits. Jaco Visser spoke to company officials on the outlook for the poultry industry in South Africa.

Cois Harman’s assistance to developing farmer GK Gasekoma is a case study in mentoring. His procedure should be compulsory in any project involving taxpayers’ money.

Last year, SA’s major diversified food-processing companies produced a mixed bag of results. Most grew their sales, but struggling consumers meant that profits lagged. Despite this, investors continued to buy shares. Jaco Visser spoke with company officials and studied the figures.

After having built up a successful fruit trading enterprise, Joseph Hendricks began farming apples and pears on land that was in desperate need of attention. Today his farming company, Kaapschön, is regarded as one of the best-performing land reform projects in the Western Cape.

Maize and sunflower producer from Senekal, John Dipale, ascribes his success to hard work and passion for agriculture. At 64, John works even harder than the young men on his farm, he tells Annelie Coleman.

Why has a wealthy Indian businessman become enamoured of SA’s wine industry? Analjit Singh told Denene Erasmus of his love affair with Franschhoek and his decision to invest in wineries here.